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A review by blurrypetals
Emergency Contact by Mary H.K. Choi
5.0
This book made my heart feel like it was made out of sunlight.
Not long ago, I finished reading Rule by Jay Crownover, which was like...a fine book. It was okay, the couple was cute, it had its own charm to it, but there wasn't anything about it that made it feel special or different from the other thirty books I've read this year so far that feature a totally non-magical girl and a cosmically ordinary boy having feelings for one another, meaning contemporaries. Because of that book, I expelled a soft, wistful sigh and thought to myself, "Man, it would be really great to find a book that makes me feel like Colleen Hoover makes me feel." but that thought was kind of impossible to actualize, since I've read everything Colleen has written except Never Never and pretty much every book that's been suggested to me based on my love for Colleen Hoover is either an actual soap opera, erotica, or both. That isn't to say those books have no value (in fact I literally read an erotica like three days ago) I just wanted something that had that something special to it.
I quit searching for that sweet spot of a book and then, two days later, Audible had a huge sale and I picked this beautiful little book up for a neat $8.34. It's taken me a hot minute to get to it, but god I am so glad I decided to read it, especially right now. I've read 77 books in 2018 so far and, excluding One of Us is Lying by Karen McManus, I've felt like I've been in a bit of a slump ever since finishing Restore Me by Tahereh Mafi...but this book saved the day for me, so now I'm going to actually talk about it.
Everything about this book was magical to me, from the way Penny thought (especially how she laid out possible options and plans of attack when dealing with unsavory situations) to the way Sam behaved to all their adorable conversations to the way their relationship started and then grew...it was all so great.
This was just one of those books that made me feel so lucky to be able to experience it. The lenses through which we experience the story, as a writer for Penny and as a documentary filmmaker for Sam, added so much unique flavor and energized zeal to the narrative, especially since those two forms of art I myself adore, filmmaking (not of the documentary style, though) and writing. It was fascinating to see how they both worked on their big projects, too. Like how Penny needed to puzzle her way through writing the story of a mother who neglects her real life infant by being so focused on a video game wherein she is raising a virtual child...I loved seeing how writing that story informed the way she acted with Sam and her own mother; it was absolutely fascinating. I also adored watching how Sam worked with the skateboard boys for his documentary and his journey to realizing he doesn't need school to tell stories or do what he wants to do. I think the conversation of "art vs. artist" was really interesting and well done here and, as an artist myself, it made the book stand out for me in a way the same story told without those elements wouldn't have done.
This made me relate on such a deep level with the characters and I reveled in every moment I got to spend watching Sam and Penny fall in love. There's a scene earlier in the book where Penny's friend and Sam's ex-niece, Jude, shows Penny a video of Sam and his ex-girlfriend and says something to the effect of, "God they were goals." and, honestly that's how I feel about Sam and Penny: they're goals. They fit so perfectly together that it actually, physically aches that I won't get to read more about them and their future.
That's when I know I've read a great book, when my only issue is that there wasn't more of it to enjoy, regardless of how long the book actually was, especially if I was grinning like a damn idiot most of the time reading it, which I was.
This book gave me a huge boost of positive energy and it matched the gorgeous weather of spring coming into full swing outside; thus, the sunlight-heart I referred to at the top of the review. I loved this and it is absolutely a new all time favorite, no hesitation on that, final answer, lock it in.
Not long ago, I finished reading Rule by Jay Crownover, which was like...a fine book. It was okay, the couple was cute, it had its own charm to it, but there wasn't anything about it that made it feel special or different from the other thirty books I've read this year so far that feature a totally non-magical girl and a cosmically ordinary boy having feelings for one another, meaning contemporaries. Because of that book, I expelled a soft, wistful sigh and thought to myself, "Man, it would be really great to find a book that makes me feel like Colleen Hoover makes me feel." but that thought was kind of impossible to actualize, since I've read everything Colleen has written except Never Never and pretty much every book that's been suggested to me based on my love for Colleen Hoover is either an actual soap opera, erotica, or both. That isn't to say those books have no value (in fact I literally read an erotica like three days ago) I just wanted something that had that something special to it.
I quit searching for that sweet spot of a book and then, two days later, Audible had a huge sale and I picked this beautiful little book up for a neat $8.34. It's taken me a hot minute to get to it, but god I am so glad I decided to read it, especially right now. I've read 77 books in 2018 so far and, excluding One of Us is Lying by Karen McManus, I've felt like I've been in a bit of a slump ever since finishing Restore Me by Tahereh Mafi...but this book saved the day for me, so now I'm going to actually talk about it.
Everything about this book was magical to me, from the way Penny thought (especially how she laid out possible options and plans of attack when dealing with unsavory situations) to the way Sam behaved to all their adorable conversations to the way their relationship started and then grew...it was all so great.
This was just one of those books that made me feel so lucky to be able to experience it. The lenses through which we experience the story, as a writer for Penny and as a documentary filmmaker for Sam, added so much unique flavor and energized zeal to the narrative, especially since those two forms of art I myself adore, filmmaking (not of the documentary style, though) and writing. It was fascinating to see how they both worked on their big projects, too. Like how Penny needed to puzzle her way through writing the story of a mother who neglects her real life infant by being so focused on a video game wherein she is raising a virtual child...I loved seeing how writing that story informed the way she acted with Sam and her own mother; it was absolutely fascinating. I also adored watching how Sam worked with the skateboard boys for his documentary and his journey to realizing he doesn't need school to tell stories or do what he wants to do. I think the conversation of "art vs. artist" was really interesting and well done here and, as an artist myself, it made the book stand out for me in a way the same story told without those elements wouldn't have done.
This made me relate on such a deep level with the characters and I reveled in every moment I got to spend watching Sam and Penny fall in love. There's a scene earlier in the book where Penny's friend and Sam's ex-niece, Jude, shows Penny a video of Sam and his ex-girlfriend and says something to the effect of, "God they were goals." and, honestly that's how I feel about Sam and Penny: they're goals. They fit so perfectly together that it actually, physically aches that I won't get to read more about them and their future.
That's when I know I've read a great book, when my only issue is that there wasn't more of it to enjoy, regardless of how long the book actually was, especially if I was grinning like a damn idiot most of the time reading it, which I was.
This book gave me a huge boost of positive energy and it matched the gorgeous weather of spring coming into full swing outside; thus, the sunlight-heart I referred to at the top of the review. I loved this and it is absolutely a new all time favorite, no hesitation on that, final answer, lock it in.